Black Swan (2010)

Directed by: Darren Aronofsky
Starring: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel

Overall Rating: 97.0

With "Black Swan", Darren Aronofsky's 5th film, the prolific director creates one of the best psychological thrillers in years.  While the core matter of the film is the beautiful art of ballet, Aronofsky adds layers within the film intended to frighten the audience to the core, and he succeeds at every turn.

Natalie Portman goes above and beyond to earn her first Oscar for her performance as Nina, the newly crowned lead in the "Swan Lake".  The sweet and innocent Nina is perfect for the role of the "white swan" portion of the play, but lacks the life lessons necessary to effectively play the darker "black swan".  Over the course of the movie, her own psyche attempts to transform her into the black swan to ensure she performs the role perfectly, but as Nina is not yet ready to go into those depths, she (and the audience) are left terrified when her mind slowly begins to fade into the darkness.

The atmosphere that Aronofsky creates is a dark, intense world where a simple reflection can haunt your dreams.  It's moody, yet remains artfully enchanting.  Inside the ballet studio, Aronofsky finds a way to make you completely forget you're watching a movie.  With sprawling 360 degree shots surrounded by mirrors, the dancers fill the screen, making the fact that you don't see any cameras or film crews despite your 360 degree viewing angle all the more visually impressive.

To accompany the intense visuals, the film is equally as psychological with its sound design.  Not just the soundtrack of the ballet pieces, but during Nina's moments of fear, the movie echoes the voices in her head so well that it feels like you are going along with her down the rabbit hole.

The central theme of "Black Swan" is transformation.  It's not just for Nina, but for you the audience.  As you finish viewing Aronofsky's masterpiece, you're left in a different state of mind than when you begin. 

Individual Ratings
Enjoyment Factor: 10
Dialogue: 9
Acting: 10
Direction: 10
Audio/Visual: 10

Ted (2012)

Directed by: Seth MacFarlane
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, Seth MacFarlane

Overall Rating: 83.2

"Ted" is Seth MacFarlane's first foray as a feature film actor.  In it, he tells the story of what happen when that magical teddy bear you wished came alive actually did, and grew up 25 years later.  It's got the typical Seth MacFarlane humor, but in a non-Family Guy ripoff kind of way.  It's fast paced with plenty of pop-culture references that his generational audience can enjoy.

Sure, there are plenty of timely jokes that fall flat, but all-in-all, "Ted" does a good job of keeping things going throughout the course of the movie.

The acting is all passable.  Walhberg's jokes come across as sincere and MacFarlane continues to be one of the best comedic voice actors today.  While Kunis plays essentially the same role she's played in every movie other than "Black Swan", when she had her spots to make the audience laugh, she did a decent job.

I always try to give movies credit when they try to do something original, and with "Ted", you definitely get original.  One of the better comedies in recent years.

Individual Ratings
Enjoyment Factor: 9
Dialogue: 8
Acting: 7
Direction: 7
Audio/Visual: 7